England’s women rewarded with professional contracts

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Mclean is among those to have committed to full-time rugby for the next yearJordan Mansfield / Getty Images

Sarah Ebner

Last updated at 1:41PM, August 25 2014

England’s female rugby stars have been given the chance to turn professional
in an attempt to add Olympic sevens gold in to their recent World Cup
victory.

After England’s amateur players became world champions for a second time a few
weeks ago, there were demands for the RFU to set up a professional arm. That
has now happened, but with the focus on Great Britain seeking qualification
for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in sevens - the first time
rugby has featured in the Olympics since 1924 - rather than as an
international XV.